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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chest — of your body
  5. net — in sport
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. pass — a permit
  8. mine — for digging
  9. net — for catching
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. rest — what's left
  14. squash — to crush
  15. rest — what's left
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. chest — a box
  19. rest — a break
  20. chair — a leader
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. net — after costs
  24. chair — a professorship

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com